Life is too short...

A couple of weeks ago my mom's brother, Uncle John, drove up the east coast from Florida to visit friends and family along the way. I haven't seen uncle john in years... many years. I never really knew him well, but I knew that my Mom always wanted family around more, so it would be nice to have him visit.
He settled in fairly well upon his arrival, the kids warmed up to him quickly sweetly referring to him as "big uncle john". He lit up when the kids called him, and giggled when they were naughty....
He was a joy to have around. A silent presence, but a peaceful one at that.
I never would have expected his presence to be so meaningful. ( I know that sounds terrible, but I never really knew him growing up, and how much would we catch up on in his visit... )

Well Last week wednesday my mother found john dead. He had died in his sleep. His autopsy revealed his arteries had hardened so much he couldn't get any blood to his heart. Who would have known.
When Ryan came home to tell me, I was shocked. But truthfully I was not surprised.

I got this amazing flash, like in the movies when flashbacks come and go, one image after another. I saw John's last couple weeks, his pilgrimage up the east coast, his arrival to my parents home, his laughter, his presence, the joy in his eyes. Then the whole thing made sense. It was this great big plan... God's plan. He brought John to us, to know us, to teach us, so that we might teach him. John was surrouned by a family, by unconditional love, by the joy that young children bring. These were things he had never really had for himself. What a gift. What a blessing to have been a part of such a plan.
John left such an imprint on me. I expect him to be sitting at the counter when I arrive at ma & pa's, but he's not. (I'm sure he is in spirit.) He was a man that most people never would have thought twice about, average joe if you know what I mean. But maybe that's just it, God uses those average joes for great works.
He taught me one of the most valuable lessons I'll ever learn.... that life is too short.
It's not about what we have or where we live. It's about the joy that comes from family, it's about the laughter we share, the tears we cry together, and the unconditional love that we have been so blessed to be a part of.

We will miss big uncle john, more than he'll ever know. But because of him, we'll love a little deeper, laugh a little harder, and hold tight to the days we've been given.
Because life is just too short.

Don't be mad mommy....

Holy Blog lag....

Yesterday I was getting ready for work, Ryan was home and the kids were out playing.

They got kinda quiet so Ry went to check on them.

Then I hear "where did you get that?!"

Turns out they had been playing with a permanant marker drawing all over themselves...

Ry sent them in to show me what they had been doing.

Matthew looks up at me and says" mommy, don't be mad, we just playing indian."

How can you resist those faces. :-)

So today, I am thankful for the funnies in life....

the moments when all you can do is laugh....

and the ability to see life through the eyes of my children, even if only for a moment.

Have a blessed day, I'll try not to stay away so long.

Story of the day....

One day the kids and I were driving in the car, and Ellie was singing and dancing to the music. Matthew was getting all annoyed with her telling her that she was not allowed to sing. So I explained to him that Ellie liked to sing, that God put a song in her heart, and she was dancing to her music. I asked him what God put in his heart. He answered "golf, baseball, soccer, and golf, but no signing and dancing!"
Fast forward to tonight.
We are all attending a wedding tomorrow. My cousin Jordan is marrying the sweetest thing, Lauren.
Before bed tonight, Ryan asked Ellie if she would dance with him at the reception tomorrow. She said yes!
Matthew looks at me and says, "Not me mommy, I don't have dancing in my heart." I just smiled and hugged him tight, remembering the conversation we had earlier. When I asked him what was in his heart...."baseball mommy, baseball."

I just can't believe the things they remember some days. A little obscure conversation we had one day, just comes back later.

So today, I am grateful for the sweetness, for his love of the ball, for her love of the song.
May they never lose that love.
May they always find the things that make them happy.

Blessings on your day. Hopefully some pics of the wedding for you in the next couple days.

What is it about sunflowers?

There's something magical about a sunflower.
Maybe it's the instant smile that they bring to your face.
Or maybe it's how an entire field of sunflowers turn their face to the sun.
Maybe it's just all the different colors and varieties they come in.
Who knows what it really is. Pure beauty.

These are planted in mimi and papi's garden, in a huge gigantic patch.
They are the gate keepers....
they smile at you when you enter, reminding you how big they really are.

We must have planted a variety pack, because each one is a little different than the next.
The kids were happy to stand in front of the giants. Too bad all the sunflower wouldn't smile for the camera.
The real reason we were at the Drumm Rd Farm is an "earful".

We were shucking, cooking, bagging, and freezing corn. The sweet corn this year has been fantastic, so we decided to cook some and freeze it so we can remember all winter long how great it was!

I hope your day is filled with peace.

Get out and enjoy the sweet breeze and warm sun.

Smile for no reason at all.

Because life is good.

Blessings on you and your day.

CRAZy, Lazy, Days of SUmmer

Where oh where has the summer gone?
My kids have been loving the outdoors all summer long. Every afternoon we get our rain shower, (seems like we live in flordia these days.....) around nap time. Even Ellie says uh oh... here comes the rain! It's pretty cute.
My baby is not a baby anymore.
Mommy got her ears pierced. It was a spur of the moment ordeal and she did just fine with it.
They look really cute on her, and she is very proud to show them off.
A girly girl at heart.
A couple of weeks ago we went out to Hamlin Beach Park with mimi and papi and threw some rocks into the water.
The kids just love that water.... by the end Matthew was soaked and fully sanded. Ellie didn't really want to be wet!

For All my awesome stampers our catalogs are in! I haven't snaped a pic yet, but they are beautiful! Drop me a line and I can get one to you. Our next stamping event is the 21st.

I finally posted our canada projects to etsy, so check them out

www.toofabulous.etsy.com

Hope your sunday is a blessed start to your week!

Family

Are you tired of hearing about Canada yet?
Well too bad!

Some of my earliest childhood memories are with Grandma and Grandpa in Canada. They would tell Brandon and I to pack our bags we were going on a trip. We would catch frogs (which we later found out were used for bait...ewwww), fish with Grandpa, and craft with Grandma. We always had so much fun.
Dad still tells us stories of Canada when they were kids. So over the years as I told you before it's evolved to a larger family affair. But it's all because of these two....

Gamma Helen and Papi Louie as my kids call them....

Over 50 years of marriage, 4 children, and too many grandchildren to count....
What was once just a little family vacation, a simple fishing trip to a remote area in canada.....
has now become a legend.
A family reunion of sorts...

( It's Grandma's birthday this week.... Happy birthday! )

I think my favorite part of the week is simply watching the joy in their eyes.

The love for their family.

That what was once their family vacation has become OUR family vacation.

Dinner times are the best. Grandma sits on the deck like a queen watching over her kingdom.... everyone eats and gathers round and then they scatter again.

Even Grandpa, a man of few words, smiles more often, laughs a little harder.

The joy in his eyes is priceless.

These are the moments I want for my family.

To have memories of family surrounding them, laughing and playing with them.

To create a legacy like Grandma and Grandpa have.

Thank you. I love you guys!

So today, I give thanks for family, for the laughter, the tears, and joy that we bring to each other.

I hope you can say the same for yours. Blessings on your day....

Miss me yet?

Vacations are never long enough. 7 days just isn't enough. By the time you get there and settle in, it's time to pack up and come home.... I vote for 10 days next year!

This was a fabulous trip, after many years of searching for the right cottage on the right lake.... I think we've found it. Not exactly where everyone else is, but you can't have everything right?

We stayed in a 7 bedroom cottage right on the Upper Rideau Lake, in Westport, Ontario Canada. Sunnyside Campground to be exact!
The Cottage was right on the water, right next to the beach, and spread out enough that we all had enough room.

The babes had a blast, they got to fish, boat, play in the sand and play, play, and play!
They were just glowing with radiance. The whole family was around, everyone was there to play together. No work, no school, no schedule, no conact with the outside world.
Just us.


And the fish....
Did I mention that fishing was involved? We fished off the dock, we fished on the boat, we might have even been fishing in our dreams.... (some of us that is)
Every night, the sun would set, tucking us in, letting us rest up for our next day of fun...and fishing... and food.
So for now, Canada is over, but there's always next year. Don't think we haven't stopped talking about it, or planning it, especially the food....

Hope your week has been full of the unexpected....
Blessings to you and yours.

Canada.

July has just flown by so far.... I can't believe it's that time already.

Every year the Szklany Clan (or Mafia) whichever you prefer, gathers in Westport, Ontario for a week of fishing, crafting, cooking, and family fun. All year we talk about "canada", what we should do for "canada". It's pretty cool really, what was a family tradation for my fathers family, has now trickled down to the rest of the clan. My kids have been talking about it for weeks now. It all starts with the trip to Bass Pro Shop. Where the gathering of supplies begins.
Then we talk food.
That deserves a line of its own for sure. EVERYone knows that szklany's love to eat.
And last but not least....packing, up late the night before, filling bins with food and duffels with clothes. Clothes are usually an afterthought. Just make sure the food and fishing supplies are packed.... Oh wait, a bin(or two) for crafting supplies.
This year I decided to rent a couple of lenses for my little camera love. So I rented a mac daddy... 135mm f/2.0 L series lens. Nothing to joke around about that's for sure.
LOVE IT!

Can I say it again.... LOve it! Now I've been touched by the L series.... I might just have to start saving.

So even though I was supposed to be gathering supplies, and packing clothes.... I've really been editing pictures and playing with my new toys.

I hope you all have a blessed week.... Hopefully I'll have lots of pics to show when we return, eh?

My cool cats...

What a week, Ryan was home with us this past week so we have had a blast. I had the beginning of the week off so the kids were in their glory with us both home. We really had a nice week, I had to work crazy hours the end of the week so that was a bummer, but I don't think the kids really minded because daddy was home.
We went to the splash park this morning. It was so much fun. Matthew found couple of boys a little older than he was to throw water on, so he was in heaven. Ellie was chillin on the playground nearby. I brought my camera only to figure out I left my memory card at home... silly mommy.
So when we got home the kids played a little outside. They were being crazy silly.


A quick kiss before a race down the driveway...


On your mark, get set..... go....

Hope your day is joyous. I'll catch ya tomorrow hopefully!

Lean Mean Pedaling Machine

This is Matthew.

This is Matthew on wheels.
Look out world he figured out how to pedal. Now, all he wants to do is pedal... and golf, but that pretty much goes without having to be said. And as of this morning he is a proud new owner of a helmet. Last night we figured out that golf is for grass and bikes are for driveways. Way too hard to pedal on the grass. He's so worried that if he leaves his bike, sister is going to figure out how to pedal on his bike. (it's a magic bike you see) I think he finally realizes that sister can't even reach the pedals on his bike. :-)

And on to different news...
This is the end of our driveway.
So much for backing out these days.
On Thursday the backhoe came and dug out the gutters along the side of the road. The whole time they were digging, Matthew was standing at the top of our driveway with his hands on his hips, yelling "hey you diggin thing, you can't take our driveway!" It was quite humorous if you ask me. He was quite traumatized. He had to call daddy and tell on them.
Now, however, we have decided to make the best of it and play while we can. There are some big rocks left in there you know!
Well, that's it in our crazy world for today! Blessings to you on this happy Monday!

A day for the kings.....

As we all now yesterday was Father's Day... A tribute to the men in our lives. To our fathers, brothers, grandfathers, and sons. A day for them to play... in our case golf.

This was Matthew's first day out... on a real golf course. As many of you know, we are golf crazed around our house. So you can only guess the excitement that was unfolding around here.
Matthew was determined to carry his own clubs...as you can probably tell by the strain on his face. :-)

I kept trying to snap pictures.... this is the look I got as he was in the car.... "we are ready to leave mommy.", "we see you later".

So while the boys were all out golfing, the girls got to stamp. Ellie nicely napped at mimi's house, while us girls created a mess on the table.

Oh what fun we had, It's so much fun to play together.

Matthew upon his return, still wanted to golf, so he was out telling everyone else what to do. The little boss with his hands on his hips. AS you can tell... he probably gets this directing traffic from his papi who is also standing there with his hands on his hips.

I hope you all had a wonderful day together. We are truly blessed to have all these wonderful men in our lives. I thank God everyday for the wonderful examples he has provided for my children. Thank you and we love you! Blessings on your Monday.... See you tomorrow!

Projects....

We stamped last night! It's so much fun to get together and create! I love to see everyone enjoy themselves..... These are some of the projects we made. Enjoy!

Supplies: All Stampin Up : Jumbo Outline Alphabet, Dotted Background; Close to cocoa, groovy guava, mellow moss cardstock; watercolor paper; Mellow Moss watercolor crayon; stazon; close to cocoa classic ink, groovy guava double stiched ribbon, neutrals button, thread, corner rounder punch.

Supplies: Papertrey classic white cardstock; A little birdie told me (stampin up), Simple alphabet(papertrey ink) copic markers, crystal effects(stampin up)

Supplies: Tart & tangy stamp set (stampin up), summer picnic dsp (SU), whisper white cardstock, red gingham ribbon(su) nestabilities (spellbinders)

Supplies: A little birdie told me (SU), sentiment (amuse art stamps), black staz on, copic markers, crystal effects (SU).

Babes are sleeping so I've got to get things picked up a little. It's the only time I really have to do anything. Hope you are all having a great day! It's almost the weekend! YEAH!

Blessings to you all!

I have been given a gift....

well really two gifts....

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't cherish these two gifts. (there are days that I would like to give them back.... but only for a moment)

I think motherhood is one of the most amazing things, selfless, and amazing. You have these babes that God so lovingly entrusted you with, to love, to teach, to disipline. Their innocence is so sweet, everyday something new. When I look at them I can't help but think they are a little glimpse of heaven.

Matthew says to me today "mommy, when I grow up, I'm going to be a grown up right?" "Yes", I replied. "When my a grown up I'm going to cook for you all the time, we'll have lunch all day. Then after lunch we'll have marshmallows." Lunch all day sound mighty fine to me!


We broke out the 4.97 target clearance special pool this weekend. It was awesome, the kids love it. It's got a little slide, and a giraffe sprayer.....I'm jealous. My peonies decided to pop in the heat of the day, they have this sweet pure pink to them when they first bloom, then a day later they are almost white from the sun. Just when you think they can't bloom anymore they get even bigger. I love peonies....
As I looked closer...there were ladybugs all over my peonies....they were so cute!
Hope your day is full of life's little blessings!

Al's Farm

As long as I can remember the Szklany's have had gardens. From Papi Louie and Gamma Helen, to Uncle Ron, and my family. Some of my earliest memories are in the gardens when we lived in Williamson. However, when we moved to Webster, where my parents currently live there was a battle. You would think on 4 acres one could achieve a successful garden right? Well...there were animals. Animals who thought the planting was all for them. All the grapes, raspberries, apples, and fresh produce one could ever dream of. It was heaven for the animals. Until Farmer Al got serious. Tired of losing all his hard work, he set up The Fortress. A 40' x 100' garden surrounded by...yep you guessed it, an electric fence.
No messing around anymore. All the links are nice and secure.
The fence humms a little tune, a warning song for us and the kids, a song of protection for our sweet fruits, vegetables, and flowers basking in the sunlight waiting to grow.

So far so good, some of the seeds are already popping up! All in a row waiting for their growing orders. Can't wait to watch them, and reap the delicious rewards. All the hard work will finally pay off!

Blessings to you all as you go on your way!

Wow Thursday Already!

Hello there....how time flies. Ellie's not feeling very well so we've spent a lot of time cuddled on the couch. Nice, but hard to get things done. My dear sweet Ryan has been working a couple of nights this week to save a little extra dough. It's nice that it's an option, but it's hard to have him gone all day and night! We were at Mimi's and Papi's this past weekend for mimi's birthday and their anniversary. Ryan and Matthew were all cuddled up, it was so sweet. I just love this pic of ry, usually he has a weird look on his face when I take his pics, but he's just nice a relaxed here. The funny part, that you can't see, is that Matthew had his hand up to the camera so that I couldn't get his picture. What a ham!


Mimi is a lot like my grammie was. She's always willing to drop everything and play. Ellie asks to read a book, or play a game, or just sit and snuggle, and Mimi is right there waiting. We are very blessed to have such a wonderful loving family. I attribute a lot of that to my parents. They worked so hard at everything, life, love, faith, you name it. What amazing people...still in love, and still married after 39 years! Love you mimi and papi! I just adored this picture, the sweet innocence of little hands, waiting, loving, trusting, resting. Well, my little one is calling. Time for more snuggles. Hope you have a blessed day!

Happy Monday!

Everyone loves a Harley riding chick right? Especially a 2 year old... This is my dare-devil, harley riding, sweet pea.... who would have thought for such a little thing she'd have such a wild streak in her? Look out for this one baby, she's gonna be T-r-o-u-b-l-e!


How was your weekend? We were so busy, finally sunday afternoon/ evening we got a chance to just chill together as a fam. The kids love it when we're all home together. It's so nice to just play. These are the seed we planted last weekend, they started to sprout with all the beautiful weather we've had. These are cantaloupe...I've never planted cantaloupe before, but I can only imagine how a fresh, sun ripened cantaloupe would be right out of the garden! The kids have had fun watching them grow. It's fun to see their little eyes light up when what was once a seed has sprouted into a little baby plant. What a miracle!
This is my sweet foxglove I planted right behind the garage...They remind me of little lizards with all their spots!

Hope you all have a happy day! Blessings to you all, hopefully I'll have more stamping for you tomorrow, i just got some goodies today!

My got Crocs on my Crack!

All out of the mouths of babes... I bought Matthew some crocodile undies at work last night, I just knew he would love them. Of course when I showed them to him this morning, he wanted to wear them right away! He wandered off to play for a while, then came running up to me yelling. When I asked him what was going on, he said "mommy, mommy, my have crocs on my crack!"

And just a little sneak peak at tonights fun!

My first!

Finally, I join the bloggin world... What do you think?

I'll try to update daily (Maybe..) Card projects for stamping, family funnies, happenings in our crazy lives. Life goes by too fast, and we don't talk enough to the ones we love. So maybe just maybe in my own little way I can bring our worlds a little closer.

I'm not sure what to say today, and I've got tons to do for tomorrow nights stamping. So I'll leave you with a card....it's an oldie. But since I'm in stamping mode... it's all you get!

All Supplies from Stampin Up: Embrace Life Stamp Set ;Bayou Blue, Kraft, and Watercolor Papers; Watercolor wonder Crayons with aqua Painter; Timber Brown Stazon ; Chocolate Chip Wide Grosgrain Ribbon.